勤
勤 — Diligence
diligence, become employed, serve
On’yomiキン (kin)
On’yomiゴン (gon)
Kun’yomiつとめる (tsutomeru)
Kun’yomi-づとめ (zutome)
Kun’yomiつとまる (tsutomaru)
Kun’yomiいそしむ (isoshimu)
Stroke order (12 strokes)
Watch the strokes draw themselves in the correct order — numbers mark where each stroke starts. Diagram from KanjiVG (CC BY-SA).
Common words using 勤
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 勤務 | きんむ kinmu | service; duty; work |
| 通勤 | つうきん tsuukin | commuting to work |
| 勤労 | きんろう kinrou | labor; labour; exertion |
| 転勤 | てんきん tenkin | job transfer; job relocation; intra-company transfer |
| 勤労者 | きんろうしゃ kinrousha | worker |
| 出勤 | しゅっきん shukkin | going to work; leaving for work; attendance (at work) |
Study notes
勤 is a JLPT N3 kanji written with 12 strokes. It is taught in Japanese elementary school (grade 6), so native children learn it early — a good sign it appears everywhere. Ranked #830 of the 2,500 most frequent kanji in newspapers. On’yomi (音読み) are Chinese-derived readings mostly used in compound words; kun’yomi (訓読み) are native Japanese readings, with any highlighted part written in hiragana after the kanji (okurigana).
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